My father was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer and given approximately six months to live. I am concerned that we don’t have everything in order to make the process of handling his estate go as smooth as possible. Here are the facts: my father is 59 years old, has a will which was created in the late 70s. He is married to my mother, but legally separated. The will provides that all assets go to my mother. He has two children, myself (33) and a son (31). The estate consists of a home in his name only (with a mortgage which has a policy to pay off the balance upon my father’s death and a home equity loan which does not have this coverage), 84 acres of land, miscellaneous personal property. The intention when my father passes is for my brother to obtain the home and half of the land, I will obtain the other half of the land. The personal property will most likely go to my brother (which is ok with me).
My concerns: should we get a trust in place ASAP in an attempt to avoid probate. If we keep the will as is, how difficult is it going to be for my mother to transfer the house and land, and what issues might she encounter in doing so. The primary mortgage will be paid in full by an existing insurance policy; however the home equity loan ($40,000) will remain outstanding. Could my brother obtain a mortgage and pay off the home equity loan? Am I correct that we need to modify the current will to ensure my fathers assets are distributed as he plans? My mother seems to think that because there is a will, everything will be just fine (she intends to distribute the property to us as indicated above). Thank you!!
